


Palpitations

by ValhallaKoala



Category: Adventure Time
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Awkward Flirting, Because Bonnibel is being dumb, Bonnibel is thirsty and can't deal, F/F, Glasses are extremely sexy, Haha it's not even flirting, I know I'm ashamed, I'm sorry to anyone who gets extreme second hand embarassment from this, It honestly hurt writing this, It's So Cliche, Just Bonnibel making a complete fool of herself, Lady thinks Bonnibel is being dumb, When will the world realize this?, but here we are, but we love her anyway
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-13 08:06:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28900131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ValhallaKoala/pseuds/ValhallaKoala
Summary: Black coffee tastes just as good as a caramel macchiato, right? Right!?OrBonnibel is socially inept and makes some questionable decisions.
Relationships: Marceline & Keila (Adventure Time), Princess Bubblegum & Lady Rainicorn, Princess Bubblegum/Marceline
Comments: 36
Kudos: 86





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, I did a thing. The thing is this fic. Not gonna be over three chapters, just an idea that wouldn't leave me alone. Enjoy! (Or don't I guess. Up to you)

Bonnibel yawned as she pushed open the door to the Nightosphere Cafe. She was up late the night before working on her chemistry homework and desperately needed caffeine. She didn’t drink coffee often, usually settling for caffeinated tea or some form of (probably toxic) energy drink, but Nightosphere had these little cinnamon rolls that were somehow the best cinnamon roll she had tasted and will ever taste and she needed that after her late night. She got in the back of the line that was already around ten people long (ten? Really? It was only eight thirty!) and waited.

Nightosphere was so popular, not only for it’s cinnamon rolls and legitimately well prepared coffee, but because they opened early enough for soulless college students (such as yours truly) to consume an unhealthy amount of caffeine and head to their early morning classes, or study sessions, or god knows what else. Bonnibel’s body seemed to be programmed to wake up around seven AM every day, no matter how late she stayed up, so on the rare occasion she decides to drink coffee, she appreciated Nightosphere’s accommodating hours.

As the line crept along, she formulated a plan for the day. After she got back to her dorm (which she lived in alone, thank god), her classes didn’t start till after noon, so she would finish up that essay she had for biology. Then she might as well read ahead a few chapters in the textbook. By that point Finn probably will have texted her asking for some help in one of his classes, so she’d begrudgingly do that, and by the time he’s understood the text it will probably be time for Calculus. If she has some time to spare, she’ll probably spend it at the library. She nodded to herself, cementing the plan in her head. She liked plans.

She looked up and saw that the person in front of her was ordering. She already knew what she was going to order (caramel macchiato with vanilla syrup. Her friends always ribbed her for getting something so sweet, but she just hasn’t ever had a taste for coffee, so she tries to make it so that she can barely taste it. And this way, she can have both caffeine AND a sugar high! Yaaaaaay!), but she glanced at the glass case holding their pastries and sandwiches and the like to make sure they had cinnamon rolls. There were two left. If she had arrived a few minutes later, they probably would’ve been gone.

The person in front of her left to wait for their coffee, and Bonnibel’s heart stopped.

In front of her was the most gorgeous human being she had ever seen. She knew it was cliche, but she honestly felt as if time stood still when she stepped up to the counter. The woman’s long, black hair cascaded down to what Bonnibel assumed was her mid-thigh (she had half a mind to lean over the counter to check, but that would probably be harassment) and she wore sharp black eyeliner, making her bright green eyes pop. She had tawny brown skin and little guitar earrings hanging from her lobes; she also had a few cartilage piercings in her left ear and a small silver nose ring. Bonnibel could feel her face heating up. _Great_ , she thought. _I’m blushing like an idiot in front of the most breathtakingly beautiful woman on the entire planet_. She could only hope it wasn’t visible. By the disinterested look on the girl’s face, she either didn’t notice or didn’t care. She cleared her throat and looked at Bonnibel expectantly, which is when she realized she should probably order.

Which brought her to her second dilemma. How could she order probably the most sugary drink and the sweetest pastry Nightosphere carried in front of this girl? She’d laugh and think she was childish! No, she had to order something mature. Something that said ‘I’ve got places to be’. Something that said ‘I’m an adult with priorities’. Something that said ‘I want to be so caffeinated that I risk heart failure’.

“Uh, regular cappuccino!” she blurted, too loud. The girl nodded and tapped it into the screen in front of her.

“Anything else?” she asked boredly.

Bonnibel gazed at the cinnamon rolls mournfully. “...No, that’s it.”

“$3.65,” the girl said. "Can I have a name for the order?" Bonnibel gave the girl her name and handed over a five dollar bill, making sure the girl saw her leave the change in the tip jar. She walked over to wait for her coffee.

Three minutes later, the girl handed Bonnibel an intimidatingly large cup of nearly black coffee. She thanked the girl, internally winced at what she was about to do, then took a large sip of what was probably the most disgusting beverage she had ever tasted. She almost spit it out. But she forced it down, involuntarily making a face as she did. The girl, who looked like she was about to walk away, stopped when she saw Bonnibel’s face.

“Uh...you ok? I can put some vanilla syrup in that or something if you want,” she offered. Bonnibel shook her head emphatically.

“Nope! This is good! You probably don’t know me, but I drink this coffee every morning. Starts the day off right, you know?” She screamed at herself to stop talking. The girl nodded slowly.

“...Uh-huh. ‘Cause it’s no trouble, I can just add a pump of this, no sweat,” she offered again, cocking her extremely attractive thumb (how can a thumb be attractive!? Was this girl a goddess?) at a bottle of white syrup just behind her. Bonnibel wanted to cry from how badly she wanted that vanilla syrup. She forced herself to shake her head and take another sip. The face she made this time was smaller, but not nonexistent. The girl raised an eyebrow. Bonnibel forced a smile.

“This is actually my favorite drink.” _Stop talking._ “In fact, I might come back here tomorrow because this is so good.” _Stop talking!_ “So, you might see me around a lot more often.” _STOP TALKING!_ “I’m sure you understand my mature desire for black coffee.” And before she could stop herself, she made perhaps the worst decision that she had ever made in her entire life: she winked. The only wrinkle in that attractive and flirtatious maneuver was that she couldn’t wink. So she ended up closing one eye and awkwardly squinting the other while the girl stared at her like she had a watermelon for a head. Her face heated in intense, burning embarrassment. She mumbled something vaguely resembling “Gotta go”, turned around, and fled.

Once she was safely out the door, she looked at the cup in her hand in disdain. She tossed it in the nearest trash can, ran her hands through her pink hair, and attempted to recover from what was probably the most mortifying experience of her entire life. She guessed she’d be there tomorrow (thanks so much, past Bonnibel), so there was plenty of time to think of a plan.

Dear god, what had she gotten herself into?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a bold statement, but...expect the next chapter sometime next week? Also I've got something big in the works. I should be working on that and not this, but oh well. Anyway, hope you enjoyed!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marceline discovers that Bonnibel looks extremely cute in glasses.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeey, chapter two! I kept my word (barely) and uploaded this within a week! I am so proud of myself. Anyway, on with the show!

Marceline was beginning to look forward to the pink-haired girl’s visits. Bonnibel was her name, which Marceline knew now from all the times she had given her name for her order, which was every day for almost a week now.

And every time, without fail, she ordered a regular cappuccino. Marceline didn’t know who she was trying to fool, and she also wasn’t sure that Bonnibel fully understood how windows worked, because she could clearly see that Bonnibel threw the coffee out the minute she left. Marceline knew that not saying anything to Bonnibel or her manager was probably not the right course of action, and certainly a waste of coffee beans, but she couldn’t help it. She enjoyed Bonnibel’s visits too much.

And maybe she thought the little faces Bonnibel pulled when she was pretending to enjoy black coffee were cute, so what? That was Marceline’s business, and no one else’s.

She sometimes thought of taking her order but replacing the cappuccino with something sweeter, but she feared Bonnibel would try to hand it back and insist that black coffee was her favorite drink. (The aforementioned cute faces had nothing to do with it)

And, speak of the devil, she caught a glimpse of bubblegum pink entering the door of the cafe. Bonnibel had a friend with her that she didn’t recognize, a blonde woman wearing a rainbow cardigan that was at least a head taller than the pink-haired woman.

But what Marceline really noticed was that Bonnibel was wearing a pair of large, round Harry Potter looking glasses that she had never seen her wear before. She found herself wondering, absurdly, if the glasses would get in the way of Bonnibel kissing her. Or anyone she felt like kissing! Not Marceline specifically. Of course not, that was ridiculous. Bonnibel could kiss anyone she wanted to. Marceline ignored the sinking feeling that that thought gave her. They hadn’t spoken more than a few sentences to each other, they were hardly in a position to be kissing! Which Marceline wasn’t thinking about in the first place, so everything was Totally and Completely Fine.

She realized she was staring when she caught the last snippet of the order of the man in front of her.

“-and one of those chicken salad sandwiches there,” he was saying, pointing to a panini wrapped in plastic in the display case. Marceline shook herself.

“I’m sorry, what was that first part?” she asked sheepishly. The man huffed in annoyance and repeated his order.

After a few more people in line had passed, Bonnibel and her friend stepped up to the counter. Marceline felt silly for being excited, but she couldn’t help it. Bonnibel’s fumbling was endearing, and usually the highlight of her day. And today was no different.

Marceline could tell that Bonnibel was trying her best to act casually aloof (she could tell because she was not pulling it off at all).

“Regular cappuccino for me, please,” she requested. Marceline was tapping the order into the register when Bonnibel’s friend burst out laughing. Bonnibel flushed and tried to subtly stomp on her friend’s foot. Which wouldn't've worked even without her friends loud exclamation of pain.

“Ow! What was that for?” the woman cried.

Bonnibel covertly (read: not at all covertly) whispered “Shut up!” to her friend, who apparently was unaware of Bonnibel’s convoluted plan.

“Why? I’m just saying, when have you ever drunk blac-”

Bonnibel cleared her throat loudly. “Would you like to order, Lady?” she asked in a tone that made it clear that it wasn’t a question. The friend, Lady, smirked ever so slightly. Marceline got the feeling that while she maybe wasn’t aware of the specifics of Bonnibel’s...thing, the blonde woman was certainly willing to push some buttons. She decided that she liked Bonnibel’s rainbow-colored friend.

“Yeah, I’ll have a…” she paused, exaggeratedly tapping her chin as if in thought. She looked at Bonnibel slyly. “A caramel macchiato with vanilla syrup.” She perked up. “Oh, and I’ll have some whipped cream on that,” she added, as if an afterthought. Bonnibel was staring at Lady as if she had just kicked her puppy. Marceline nodded and tapped the order into the register. She looked up for a split-second, meeting Lady’s eyes.

Oh yes, she was definitely doing this on purpose. Marceline honestly felt a little sorry for Bonnibel at this point. It must be torture to drink something so unpleasant, regularly, of your own volition. By now it was clear that Bonnibel was doing this to impress her, and while it certainly wasn’t working, it was flattering that someone would do something so...strange for her.

When she was ready with their drinks, she walked over to the counter to find them in the middle of a conversation. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn’t help trying to walk a little quieter as she approached them to try and see what they were talking about. She caught the tail end of Lady’s sentence: “-like this girl then this is definitely NOT the way to go about it.”

“Well, how should I go about it, then?”

Marceline tried to ignore the instant flutter in her chest that sentence gave her. She already knew that Bonnibel was into her, but hearing her confirm it out loud made it all the more real.

“I don’t know, maybe ask her on a date? Or tell her how you feel? Or do literally anything that’s not waste money on coffee you don’t drink?”

Bonnibel bit her lip in thought, which, ok, was a little attractive (read: a lot attractive).

“I don’t know Lady, I just-when I see her I feel like I can’t perform basic human functions without melting into a puddle of social ineptitude.”

“Yeah, no kidding. You were just staring at her like you wanted to lick her nose ring!”

Bonnibel flushed and swatted Lady’s shoulder. “I don’t want to lick her nose ring!” she said indignantly, lowering her voice. Lady nodded.

“Yeah, you’re right. She seems like she’s got some much more lickable piercings-”

Ok, that’s enough eavesdropping.

“Caramel macchiato for Lady?” she announced, trying desperately to ignore the sudden image of Bonnibel licking her belly button ring. Lady smiled and thanked her, taking the coffee and shooting Bonnibel a smug smile. Marceline was honestly impressed at the intense focus on Bonnibel’s face as she ignored her friend’s prodding.

“Aaand, a regular cappuccino for Ms. Bonnibel.” Bonnibel’s face lit up at the ‘Ms.’ and Marceline almost felt bad for letting Bonnibel think that she was impressing her. But the girl was too adorable not to mess with a _little_.

“I don’t know how you drink that stuff. It always tastes so bitter to me,” she added.

Oh man, she was evil. But Bonnibel’s flustered ramblings were too cute.

Speaking of which, Bonnibel tried to nonchalantly lean on the counter, then realized it was too low and awkwardly placed her hand that wasn’t holding a coffee on her hip.

“Oh, you know, it’s an acquired taste. That I have, uh, acquired. Couldn’t picture myself drinking anything else,” she replied casually. Lady snorted, then covered her mouth with her hand. Bonnibel turned to her and glared. “Perhaps you need to use the bathroom before we leave,” she suggested, making it clear that she didn’t have a choice in the matter. Lady nodded and set her coffee on the counter.

“I think I do,” she agreed, ambling over to the bathroom, visibly giggling as she went.

Marceline turned back to Bonnibel and nodded towards her bespectacled face. “Nice glasses,” she commented. Bonnibel reached up as if to take them off, then thought better of it and just ran her hand through her hair.

“Oh, yeah, these old things. I couldn’t find my right contact this morning, so I had to wear these. I hate them though, they’re so big and clunky and they look so stupid,” she complained, not meeting Marceline’s eyes as if she was embarrassed that she had to see her in her glasses.

Marceline frowned. “Aw, I think they’re cute,” she replied. Bonnibel’s gaze snapped back up to Marceline’s face. Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth as if to speak, then closed it.

“Oh, thanks. I mean, they’re not that bad, really, I don’t mind them all that much.” She chuckled nervously. Marceline raised an eyebrow and smirked.

“Uh-huh. I actually wear contacts, too,” she said, pointing to her eyes. “I’ve also got a pair with red irises that I wear to costume parties or if I want to freak people out.” Bonnibel perked up.

“Oh, we both have bad eyesight, that’s something we have in common!” she exclaimed. Marceline chuckled.

“Yeah, I guess it is.” She saw Lady coming out of the bathroom in her peripheral (it was hard not to with how loud the woman’s colors were). “Oh, I think your friend’s back.” Bonnibel frowned and looked forlornly over to where Lady was walking towards them.

“Well, bye, I guess,” she said, sounding disappointed.

“See ya, Bonnibel. I’m sure you’ve got places to be.” She was about to walk away when Bonnibel called after her.

“You can call me Bonni! If...you want to,” she added shyly. Marceline smiled a sort of crooked smile.

“Alright. Till next time, Bonni,” she said, and winked.

She glimpsed the deep blush on Bonnibel’s face before she turned around and walked back to the register, putting an extra flip of her hair and a sway in her hips as she did. She was nothing if not dramatic.

Bonnibel was still shooting glances over her shoulder as she and Lady walked out of the cafe.

And Marceline would be lying if she said she wasn’t a little bit smitten.

*~*~*

Bonnibel was...conflicted. On one hand, she knew Lady was right, and that she should just suck it up and tell Marceline how she feels, or at least ask her to hang out sometime, even if it’s just as friends. But on the other hand, the thought of her doing something so bold was laughable. She could never build up enough confidence to do something like that. But back on the first hand again, she didn’t want to keep making herself drink black coffee, even if it was just a sip. But on the other hand again, her plan was working! Marceline had called her ‘Ms.’, said she thought her glasses were cute, _and_ winked at her! With any luck, Marceline would soon grow so attracted to her that she would ask _Bonnibel_ out, and not the other way around.

She nodded, satisfied with her conclusion, and walked into the Nightosphere for the second time that week.

To find someone who was decidedly _not_ Marceline manning the register. She felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. Maybe Marceline was just...in the bathroom or something. By now she knew that Marceline didn’t work on Fridays, Saturdays, or Sundays, but she was pretty sure it was Tuesday. Maybe she got the date wrong? She checked her phone. Nope, it was definitely Tuesday.

When she had moved to the front of the line after about five minutes, there was still no sign of tall, dark, and handsome. The barista that stood in front of her was short, with unruly black hair and darker skin than Marceline’s. She tried to subtly look around the woman to see if she could spot Marceline making someone’s drink or something, to no avail. The woman followed Bonnibel’s gaze.

“What are you looking at?” she whispered. _Keila_ , her name tag read. Bonnibel flushed and snapped her gaze back to the barista in front of her.

“Sorry I just...is Marceline working today?” she asked, immediately regretting it. She sounded like a total creep!

The woman raised an eyebrow and shook her head. “No, she called in sick. Why do you need to know?”

Bonnibel’s face reddened and she rapidly shook her head. “No, no, I don’t need to know, I was just wondering. Not that I’m coming here just to see Marceline! That would be...stupid.” She attempted a casual chuckle. It came out like more of a strangled gasp. She winced. “I just...like the way she makes coffee. But I’m sure you are also good! At...making coffee…” She saw the woman’s bemused expression. “I’m gonna stop talking,” she muttered. The woman nodded slowly.

“So...do you want anything, or are you just gonna come back tomorrow?” Bonnibel shook her head.

“No, no, sorry, I’ll have a regu-” she caught herself. This was her chance! “A caramel macchiato! With vanilla syrup and whipped cream!” she blurted. The woman nodded and tapped it into the register.

“Anything else?” she asked. Bonnibel glanced over to the pastry case next to the register and saw that there were three cinnamon rolls left.

“And a cinnamon roll,” she added quickly, as if they would disappear if she didn’t say it fast enough. The woman nodded.

“$9.95. Can I have a name for the order?”

Bonnibel gave the woman her name, paid and walked over to the counter to wait. When the barista called her name, she grabbed her coffee and pastry as if they were the cure for a debilitating disease.

“Thank you, so much,” she said, with a probably off-putting amount of sincerity. The woman nodded awkwardly.

“Yeah...have a nice day,” she replied. Bonnibel nodded.

“I will!” she crowed, and nearly skipped out of the cafe. When she took a bite out of the cinnamon roll, she nearly wept with joy. And she swore she heard angels sing when she sipped her coffee.

She knew then that she had to make a move soon; she didn’t know how many more black coffees she could stand. But she had plenty of time to prepare. One day is more than enough time to formulate a plan.

Oh yeah, she had this in the bag.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The line about Lady needing to use the bathroom is a reference to a Calvin & Hobbes comic if you squint. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/313633561524538892/  
> I love that strip so much despite not being alive at any time when it was actually in newspapers. Do yourself a favor and borrow a collection from a library or something. Anyway, kudos and comments validate my pointless existence, I hope you enjoyed, until next time my friends.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bonnibel fumbles her way through this story's conclusion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Friday to all you students out there! Online school is the worst. Anyway, celebrate the end of another week with the last chapter! You deserve it. Apologies for using the 'I dropped my contacts so now I have to wear glasses that I hate but that my love interest finds extremely attractive' trope twice, except I'm not really that sorry. I hope the finale lives up to your expectations.

When Marceline’s alarm woke her up, she felt much better than she had the day before. And while she still wanted to burrow into the covers and pretend she still had a fever, damn it all life was too short to pretend she wasn’t excited to see Bonni again.

She blinked the sleep out of her eyes and reached for her phone to turn off the alarm. It was set to go off at 6:15, so she had forty-five minutes until she had to go to work. She stretched mightily, threw off her blankets, and swung her feet off the bed. As she was about to swap her ratty old sleep shirt for something more socially acceptable, her phone chimed. She checked the screen and saw a text from Keila.

_Keila (6:17): yo are you still sick???_

As she opened her messaging app she received two more texts in rapid succession.

_Keila (6:17): if you are sry if i woke you up_

_Keila (6:17): if ur not get out of bed lazy worm_

Marceline snorted and typed out a response.

_Marceline (6:18): your concern for my well being is truly moving_

_Marceline (6:18): and i feel better today, dont worry_

_Marceline (6:18): im sure everything went to shit without me_

_Keila (6:19): yea everyone was so sad you werent there to brighten their lives, no one got anything done_

_Marceline (6:19): you poor babys, mama marcy will kiss all your booboos_

_Keila (6:20): lol fuck you_

_Marceline (6:20): love you too_

_Keila (6:20): oh actually smth did happen_

_Marceline (6:20): ooo pray tell_

_Keila (6:21): sum chick with pink hair asked abt you_

Marceline’s heart skipped a beat. She couldn’t help the blush that stained her cheeks.

_Keila (6:21): but like she was rly awkward abt it_

Marceline chuckled. Yep, that sounded like Bonnibel.

_Marceline (6:21): bonnibel, right?_

_Keila (6:22): you know her?_

_Marceline (6:22): yea, shes an idiot. dumbass orders black coffee every time she comes in like i cant tell she hates it_

_Keila (6:22): lmao she definitely didn’t order black coffee_

_Marceline (6:23): wait wait lemme guess_

_Marceline (6:23): caramel macchiato w/ whipped cream?_

_Keila (6:23): and a cinnamon roll, how’d you know?_

Marceline burst out laughing. Of course she orders the sweetest drink they have when she thinks Marceline won’t find out.

_Marceline (6:24): just a hunch_

_Keila (6:24): ...ok well_

_Keila (6:24): shes totally into u_

_Marceline (6:25): yea and the sky is blue, tell me smth i dont know_

_Keila (6:25): wow ok ms. cocky…_

_Marceline (6:26): fuck you also i need to put clothes on so bye_

_Keila (6:26): byeeeee love you tell me if pinkie comes in again, i wanna make fun of her_

Marceline felt a protective pang in her chest. Sure, Bonnibel was fun to tease, but she didn’t want to make fun of her behind her back. She couldn’t think of a reply that wouldn’t sound hypocritical (she had called Bonni a dumbass and an idiot mere minutes earlier), so she opted to not reply. Instead she rummaged through her drawers to find her favorite crop top (a red one with a skull on it) that complimented her skin nicely. It also showed off her toned arms, but that was beside the point and had nothing to do with Bonnibel. Or anything! She wasn’t trying to show off her arms to Bonnibel, that would be stupid.

She wasn’t.

She wasn’t thinking of Bonnibel when she put on a pair of sleek black leggings that were just a smidge too tight, but which prominently displayed her hips and butt.

And she definitely wasn’t thinking of Bonnibel when she hurried to the bathroom to put on a little bit of eyeliner to emphasize her green eyes.

In fact, she was so busy not thinking of Bonnibel that she accidentally knocked her contacts in the toilet as she reached for them in the medicine cabinet. Well, they were going to fall next to the toilet, but of course Marceline had to try and grab them before they hit the ground, which significantly changed their trajectory. She groaned as they fell in the water. It was no use trying to fish them out, they were two tiny pieces of clear plastic and she wouldn’t want to wear them anyway. Which left her with the option to wear her contacts with red irises, or her backup glasses. She cursed under her breath.

Well, hopefully Bonni found glasses as attractive as she did.

*~*~*

Bonnibel was a woman with a plan. She felt confident as she walked the remaining block to the Nightosphere. She took a deep breath and went over the procedure once more in her head.

First, she’d walk in and order a caramel macchiato with whipped cream instead of her usual regular cappuccino. Marceline will be shocked because Bonnibel has been acting mature and aloof, and no one that is mature and aloof would order a coffee with whipped cream.

After she hands her the cup, Bonnibel will say that there’s something missing from her drink. Marceline has to fix a wrong order because it’s kind of her job. So, she’ll turn around and ask what’s wrong.

And _then_ , Bonnibel will say: “I think this cup should have your number on it.”

...ok, there was some room for potential error, but she still felt confident. She could definitely pull this off.

Or at least, she thought she could until she walked in and saw Marceline at the counter. Not only was she wearing a crop top under her apron that put her toned arms and parts of her midriff (Bonnibel had never hated aprons more than she did in that moment) on tantalizing display, she was also wearing the most maturely attractive glasses that Bonnibel had ever seen. They were rectangular black frames, with navy blue arms. They starkly framed her eyes and made the dazzling green color really pop. And Bonnibel could feel said eyes boring into her the minute she walked into the cafe. Marceline flashed a grin at her that made her knees wobbly before returning her attention to the man in front of the register.

By the time Bonnibel reached the front of the line, she had snuck enough glances at Marceline’s partially exposed midriff, delicate yet strong-looking arms, and dark glasses that she was pretty sure she had the image of this woman burned into her memory (the top half of her anyway). That didn’t stop her from staring at Marceline’s eyes for a good five seconds before speaking.

“Uh...glasses,” was all she could manage. Weakly gesturing to the pair on Marceline’s face. Marceline smirked.

“Astute observation,” she teased. “I dropped my contacts in the toilet this morning, so glasses it is. I like them about as much as you like yours,” she explained. Bonnibel swallowed. Marceline had called her glasses cute the other day! She could do the same. Just open her mouth, and say, ‘They look cute’. Easy as that.

Instead she found herself sweating nervously, staring for way too long at Marceline’s face, and she was pretty sure her mouth was hanging open. She had to say something, _now_.

“You’re cute!” she blurted, far too loud. She winced. Backtrack, backtrack! “I mean, not you, your glasses.” Great, she just said Marceline wasn’t attractive. “You are also cute! But, like, not in a weird way. I’m not gay.” What was she talking about? Of course she was gay! “I mean, I am gay! But not for you, like, I don’t want to kiss you or anything,” she said in a rush of words. She winced. She was sending a lot of mixed messages, and none of them were ones she wanted to send. “You just...look nice,” she finished lamely.

Marceline looked like she was trying desperately to hold back laughter. At Bonnibel’s helpless expression, she turned and laughed into her elbow, trying to disguise it as a cough. Bonnibel’s face flamed; great. Now Marceline was laughing at her.

Marceline caught sight of her expression and quickly shook her head. “No, no, no, I’m not laughing at you! You’re just...adorable, oh my god. Thank you for the compliment, I’m glad the glasses are doing it for you,” she said, waggling her eyebrows. Bonnibel blushed even harder.

“No-no they-”

Marceline laughed again.

“Relax dude, I’m just messing with you. Regular cappuccino?” she asked. Bonnibel took a deep breath.

“Uh...actually, I’ll have a caramel macchiato?”

Marceline raised an eyebrow. “That a question?” she asked. Bonnibel shook her head.

“No, I’ll have a caramel macchiato,” she said more definitively. Marceline nodded and tapped it into the register.

“That’s a far cry from a cappuccino,” she said conversationally. Bonnibel nodded and shrugged.

“Yeah, well...figured I’d branch out,” she replied. Marceline smirked.

“Pretty long branch,” she pointed out. Bonnibel shrugged again.

“...yeah,” she said weakly. Marceline nodded.

“You want some whipped cream on that?” she asked. Bonnibel cleared her throat and muttered something unintelligible. Marceline cupped her hand around her ear exaggeratedly and grinned.

“Sorry, what was that?” she asked. Bonnibel rolled her eyes and sighed.

“Yes, I would like whipped cream on that,” she said, louder. Marceline nodded and tapped it onto the register, still smiling widely.

“Anything else?” she asked. Bonnibel shook her head. She was too jittery to stomach a cinnamon roll.

“$4.95, it’ll be just a few minutes,” Marceline said. Bonnibel paid and walked over to the counter to wait.

Ok, things weren’t going _exactly_ according to plan, but she could still pull this off. She watched as Marceline prepared her drink. She seemed to take a while writing on the cup, but that was probably because it was an old marker or something. She could also be imagining it because _holy mother of god_ she could not tear her eyes away from Marceline’s legs. They were clad in a simple pair of black leggings, but they hugged her hips and...rear end very flatteringly. She knew she was being slightly creepy, but she couldn’t look anywhere else. Marceline’s legs were hypnotising, and she only looked away because she realized the legs that she had been gawking at were walking towards _her_. She quickly averted her eyes.

“Caramel macchiato for Bonni,” Marceline announced as she slid the cup across the counter to Bonnibel. If she had any idea that the pink-haired woman had been ogling her, she didn’t let on. Bonni thanked her and picked up the cup, taking a sip of it immediately. It was delicious (as she knew it would be), but now it was time for the final phase of her plan. As Marceline walked away, Bonni called her name. She turned back around, confused.

“There’s something wrong with this drink,” Bonnibel explained. Marceline looked at her questioningly.

_Ok, moment of truth. You can do this._

Bonnibel set the cup back down on the counter. She tried her best to put on a suave expression.

“I think the cup should have your number on it,” she said smoothly (read: not at all smoothly). Marceline knit her eyebrows and looked at the cup on the counter.

“Umm…” was all she said. Bonnibel took in Marceline’s confused expression and picked up the coffee cup.

Her eyes widened. There, underneath her name on the cup, were a string of numbers and a few hearts. Underneath that were the words ‘text me’ followed by several x’s. She turned her dumbfounded gaze back to Marceline.

“You-your number-”

For the second time that day, Marceline seemed to be fighting her urge to laugh.

“Oh, you had a plan for this, didn’t you?” she asked. Bonnibel could only nod. Marceline burst out laughing.

“Well, I’d apologize but it seems that you’re pretty happy with the results,” she remarked after she stopped giggling. Bonnibel nodded again.

“So...you want to go out with me?” she asked incredulously. Marceline drew her bottom lip between her teeth, as if biting back a teasing remark.

“If you’ll have me,” she replied. A wide smile spread slowly across Bonnibel’s face.

“Definitely! Yeah, uh, yes. I will. Have you,” she bubbled. Marceline laughed again.

“Good to hear, Bonni B,” she said. “Wait, what’s your last name?”

“Blum,” Bonnibel answered. Marceline raised her eyebrows.

“Woah, I swear I didn’t know that. But now that nickname is both alliterative _and_ accurate!” Bonnibel giggled.

“Yeah, I guess it is.” She tried the nickname out in her head. _‘Sup, Bonni B?_ She imagined Marceline asking with a wry smile. Yeah, she could get used to that. She wondered if Marceline’s name was also alliterative. She decided to ask. “If you know my last name, I gotta know yours,” she prompted. Marceline made a sour face.

“It’s Abadeer. It’s annoying though, everyone pronounces it ‘Aberdeen’, like they gave up halfway through and just decided to say Katniss’s last name from the Hunger Games,” she complained. Bonnibel nodded sympathetically.

“If it makes you feel any better, every substitute teacher I’ve met has pronounced my name like it rhymes with ‘plum’.” Marceline snorted.

“That’s actually hilarious, thanks for that _Ms. Blum_ ,” she said, mispronouncing it on purpose. Bonnibel narrowed her eyes.

“You’re welcome, _Ms. Aberdeen_ ,” she shot back. Marceline nodded in acknowledgement.

“Touche.”

A silence stretched between them, broken by Bonnibel sucking on her teeth and saying, “Well. I’ll, uh, text you.” Marceline smiled and nodded.

“I’m counting on it,” she replied. “Oh! before you go: just wanted to say that you don’t have to order cappuccinos anymore. I’ve been successfully wooed.” Bonnibel froze.

“Wait...you knew?” she asked. Marceline doubled over with laughter, breaking into fresh peales when she saw Bonnibel’s shell shocked expression. When she collected herself, she wiped the tears from her eyes and gestured to the window at the front of the cafe.

“Dude, there are giant ass windows right there,” she finally managed. Bonnibel followed Marceline’s finger and, sure enough, she had a clear view of the trash can from where she stood. She groaned and put her head in her hands.

“I’m such an idiot,” she mumbled. Marceline nudged her shoulder.

“You are, but don’t feel embarrassed.” Bonnibel looked up. “I like a girl with a sweet tooth,” she purred in a lower, more sultry tone, winking as she said it. Bonnibel’s face flamed. Then Marceline seemed to consider something. “Though, you should probably hold off on the winking for the time being.”

Bonnibel groaned again and her face turned an even deeper shade of red. Marceline laughed.

“No, it was cute!” she insisted.

“Maybe for you,” she grumbled. Marceline laughed again.

“Yeah, you’re lucky I seem to be a morophile,” she quipped. Bonnibel swatted her shoulder.

“Meanie,” she whined, blowing a raspberry at her. Marceline blew one right back. Bonnibel tried her hardest (and failed) not to think about what Marceline’s tongue would feel like in her mouth. The woman in question sighed.

“Well, unfortunately I have to get back to doing my job,” Marceline said reluctantly. Bonni nodded.

“I’ll text you,” she said again. Marceline smiled.

“Looking forward to it,” she replied, backing away from the counter. “Till next time, Bonni B.” Bonnibel clicked her tongue and shot Marceline a finger gun with the hand that wasn’t holding a coffee cup, walking backwards towards the door. Which proved to be a bad idea, as she bumped directly into it. Marceline laughed from her spot at the register. Bonnibel smiled sheepishly and stepped out the door properly. When Marceline blew her a kiss from inside, she nearly walked into the trash can. She waved back shyly and reluctantly walked past the window.

She took her phone out of her pocket and tapped the number in the coffee cup into her contacts.

_Bonnibel (9:24): Hey_

_Bonnibel (9:24): This is Bonnibel by the way, probably should’ve led with that_

_Bonnibel (9:24): Oh, well_

She tucked her phone in her pocket, expecting tall, dark, and handsome to reply after she was off work, but she got a reply almost immediately.

_Marceline (9:25): dont text me at work you rapscallion_

_Marceline (9:25): but hi ;)_

_Marceline (9:26): oh gotta go byeeeeee im off work at 1, text me then_

Bonnibel chuckled.

_Bonnibel (9:26): Sorry_

_Bonnibel (9:26): Can’t wait until 1 :)_

_Marceline (9:27): <3 <3 <3_

Bonnibel didn’t even care that she was grinning like an idiot at her phone. She felt giddy, as if she was walking on thin air. Her stomach was filled with butterflies, and her heart was giving her palpitations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ngl I thought that Katniss's last name was Aberdeen until I googled it to be sure (it's Everdeen if you were wondering). Thank god for editing. Also it's weird to think how long it's been since I've read the Hunger Games. Time flies.
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading, this story really started because I wanted to see if I could write enjoyable second hand embarrassment. Whether I did or not is up to you. Leave kudos if you want, or don't. Again, up to you. Comments to me are like when you find a ten dollar bill in a jacket you haven't worn in forever, I try to reply to all of them (the comments, not the money). Stay tuned for anything else I decide to write on a whim at any point in the future! Stay safe~


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